Publications
This list of publications includes peer-review journal articles, official USGS publications series, reports and more authored by scientists in the Ecosystems Mission Area. A database of all USGS publications, with advanced search features, can be accessed at the USGS Publications Warehouse.
Filter Total Items: 42905
A climate risk management screening and assessment review for Madagascar’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy A climate risk management screening and assessment review for Madagascar’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy
Madagascar, a country rich in natural capital and biodiversity but with high levels of poverty, food insecurity, and population growth, faces a number of development challenges, including obtaining sustained financial support from external sources and building internal capacity to address the poor environmental, health, and socio-economic conditions. Climate change poses an increasing...
Authors
Janet Alice Cushing, Sarah R. Weiskopf, Toni Lyn Morelli, Bonnie Myers
Lake trout rehabilitation in Lake Ontario, 2020 Lake trout rehabilitation in Lake Ontario, 2020
Each year we report on the progress toward rehabilitation of the Lake Ontario lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) population, including the results of stocking, annual assessment surveys, creel surveys, and evidence of natural reproduction observed from standard surveys performed by USGS and NYSDEC. Response to the COVID-19 pandemic limited survey effort such that spring and summer bottom...
Authors
Brian F. Lantry, Brian Weidel, Scott P. Minihkeim, Michael J. Connerton, Jessica Goretzke, Dimitry Gorsky, Christopher Osborne
Status of siscowet lake trout in Lake Superior in 2017 Status of siscowet lake trout in Lake Superior in 2017
No abstract available.
Authors
M. J. Seider, S. P. Sitar, Mark R. Vinson
Supporting the development and use of native plant materials for restoration on the Colorado Plateau (Fiscal Year 2020 Report) Supporting the development and use of native plant materials for restoration on the Colorado Plateau (Fiscal Year 2020 Report)
A primary focus of the Colorado Plateau Native Plant Program (CPNPP) is to identify and develop appropriate native plant materials (NPMs) for current and future restoration projects. Multiple efforts have characterized the myriad challenges inherent in providing appropriate seed resources to enable effective, widespread restoration and have identified a broad suite of research activities...
Authors
Robert Massatti, Daniel E. Winkler, Sasha C. Reed, Michael C. Duniway, Seth M. Munson, John B. Bradford
Vegetation community monitoring: Species composition and biophysical gradients in Klamath Network parks Vegetation community monitoring: Species composition and biophysical gradients in Klamath Network parks
The Klamath Network of the National Park Service consists of six park units located in northern California and southern Oregon. The Network began implementing a vegetation monitoring protocol in 2011 to identify ecologically significant vegetation trends in the parks. The premise of the protocol is that multivariate analyses of species composition data is the most robust early detection...
Authors
Sean B. Smith, Phillip J. van Mantgem, Dennis Odion
Regional-scale variability in the movement ecology of marine fishes revealed by an integrative acoustic tracking network Regional-scale variability in the movement ecology of marine fishes revealed by an integrative acoustic tracking network
Marine fish movement plays a critical role in ecosystem functioning and is increasingly studied with acoustic telemetry. Traditionally, this research has focused on single species and small spatial scales. However, integrated tracking networks, such as the Integrated Tracking of Aquatic Animals in the Gulf of Mexico (iTAG) network, are building the capacity to monitor multiple species...
Authors
Claudia Friess, Susan K. Lowerre-Barbieri, Gregg R. Poulakis, Neil Hammerschlag, Jayne M. Gardiner, Andrea M. Kroetz, Kim Bassos-Hull, Joel Bickford, Erin C. Bohaboy, Robert D. Ellis, Hayden Menendez, William F. Patterson, Melissa E. Price, Jennifer S. Rehage, Colin P. Shea, Matthew J. Smukall, Sarah Walters Burnsed, Krystan A. Wilkinson, Joy Young, Angela B. Collins, Breanna C. DeGroot, Cheston T. Peterson, Caleb Purtlebaugh, Michael T. Randall, Rachel M. Scharer, Ryan W. Schloesser, Tonya R. Wiley, Gina A. Alvarez, Andy J. Danylchuk, Adam G. Fox, Ashley Hill, R. Dean Grubbs, James V. Locascio, Patrick M. O’Donnell, Gregory B. Skomal, Fred G. Whoriskey, Lucas P. Griffin
Angler-caught salmonid diets illustrate Lake Ontario Alewife population and predator-prey dynamics Angler-caught salmonid diets illustrate Lake Ontario Alewife population and predator-prey dynamics
Lake Ontario fisheries decision makers use information about the status and trajectory of prey fish populations, such as alewife, for salmonid sport fish management. In 2020, the April bottom trawl survey, typically used to assess alewife, was canceled the day after it began due to Coronavirus health concerns. This prompted NYSDEC and USGS science teams to initiate a diet study using...
Authors
Brian Weidel, Scott P. Minihkeim, Michael Connerton, Christopher Legard, Nicholas Farese, Christopher Osborne, Jana Lantry
Habitat suitability index model improvement recommendations Habitat suitability index model improvement recommendations
As part of the model improvement effort for the 2023 Coastal Master Plan, the Habitat Suitability Index (HSI) models used during previous master plans were reevaluated to assess how the model relationships could be improved, and to determine what species should be included in the master plan analyses. This process considered the technical reviews, comments, and suggested improvements...
Authors
Shaye E. Sable, David C. Lindquist, Laura D’Acunto, Ann Hijuelos, Megan K. LaPeyre, Ann M. O'Connell, Elizabeth M. Robinson
Habitat suitability index model improvements Habitat suitability index model improvements
Habitat suitability index (HSI) models were developed for the 2023 Coastal Master Plan to evaluate the potential effects of coastal restoration and protection projects on habitat for key coastal fish, shellfish, and wildlife species. These species included: eastern oyster, brown shrimp, white shrimp, blue crab, crayfish, gulf menhaden, spotted seatrout, largemouth bass, American...
Authors
David C. Lindquist, Shaye E. Sable, Laura D’Acunto, Ann Hijuelos, Erik I. Johnson, Summer R.M Langlois, Nicole L. Michel, Lindsay Nakashima, Ann M. O’Connell, Katie L. Percy, Elizabeth M. Robinson
Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund for National Parks: Economic impacts of fiscal year 2021 funding Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund for National Parks: Economic impacts of fiscal year 2021 funding
The Great American Outdoors Act of 2020 (GAOA), P.L. 116-152, established the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF) to address priority deferred maintenance projects on National Park Service (NPS) and other federal lands. For the NPS, the LRF equates to receiving a maximum of $1.33 billion per year for fiscal years 2021 through 2025. Funding of this magnitude...
Authors
Catherine Cullinane Thomas, Lynne Koontz
Enhanced between-site biosecurity to minimize herpetofaunal disease-causing pathogen transmission Enhanced between-site biosecurity to minimize herpetofaunal disease-causing pathogen transmission
Pathogens and their associated diseases have the potential to severely affect wildlife populations, including herpetofauna. Concern is increasing for transmission pathways of herpetofaunal diseases, especially for amphibians affected by the fungal pathogens Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd: Longcore et al. 1999) and B. salamandrivorans (Bsal: Martel et al. 2013), and amphibians and...
Authors
Deanna H. Olson, Katherine H. Haman, Matthew J. Gray, Reid N. Harris, Tracy Thompson, Marley Iredale, Michelle Christman, Jennifer M. Williams, Michael J. Adams, Jennifer R. Ballard
Riparian area changes in greenness and water use on the Lower Colorado River in the USA from 2000-2020 Riparian area changes in greenness and water use on the Lower Colorado River in the USA from 2000-2020
Declines in riparian ecosystem greenness and water use have been observed in the delta of the Lower Colorado River (LCR) since 2000. The purpose of our case study was to measure these metrics on the U.S. side of the border between Hoover and Morelos Dams to see if declining greenness was unique to the portion of the river in Mexico. In this case study, five riparian reaches of the LCR...
Authors
Pamela L. Nagler, Armando Barreto-Muñoz, Sattar Chavoshi Borujeni, Hamideh Nouri, Christopher J. Jarchow, Kamel Didan